Lazlo Zalezac: Blog

This week I posted a chapter of Betsy. It wasn't the best chapter I've ever written and it wasn't the worst, but it was special. With that post, I finally reached 25MB of text posted on SOL. At about 6 characters per word, that translates to around 4,000,000 words of text.

It probably took typing around 5,000,000 words to get that much worth keeping. I edit a lot, rewrite stuff over and over, and pretty much worry the text to death. Still, errors creep in and no matter how many times I read it, I don't catch them all. Others do. In fact, others catch a lot of errors of mine, but even they miss some.

A good example is in the story Betsy. I know the difference between peddling and pedaling, but I never catch it when I use the wrong one while I'm proofreading it. I think that second d just looks too much like an a. That little upward part of the d is bent over in the a. The only solution is to never have a character who rides a bicycle in any of my future stories.

I've tried not to repeat myself in my stories. I keep trying to find new ways to show the hero that exists in each of us. I'm more successful in some stories than in others, still I do my best. We'll see how I do on the next couple of Megabytes of text.

I hope you've enjoyed what I've posted.

Okay, I blew it. Flagellate me with a wet noodle.

I used the word granted in the universe description in a manner in which people object - some quite strongly. Although the modern interpretation of the phrase 'Rights granted in the Constitution' has come to mean that it is a 'privilege' lent to us by the government -- the phrase is not limited to that interpretation. It also means that these rights are acknowledged as fundamental and are to be maintained (continuously 'given') by any legitimate government established under the Constitution.

The Declaration of Independence lays out quite clearly that the proper role of government is to assure those rights and not take individual liberties away in favor of the 'needs' of the many. I know the Founding Fathers were stating that the partial list of rights acknowledged in the Constitution was not a full list of rights. The idea they were putting forth -- that there are rights given to us by God and were not to be limited by a legitimate government was truly revolutionary.

It is weird that the phrase, 'The rights granted by the constitution are taken for granted,' has individuals who interpret the first use of granted as only meaning 'given as a gift' while accepting the second use of granted as meaning 'given as a fact.'

You can argue that, but I wrote it and I meant the later meaning of granted in both uses -- so there!

Some readers have rightly said that John and Jane Smith are flat and nondescript characters. Yes, they are. They are generic figures who are given plain ordinary names. Jane is not a full figured woman with body parts that will stop traffic. John is not a handsome man who causes women to swoon. They are not described at all. To me that makes sense because they are supposed to represent anybody -- not someone specifically. In fact, they could be you and share all of your hopes and dreams for the future.

John and Jane are not the stars in this universe. They are the road kill by the side of the street, run over by a bureaucratic system with all of the feelings and emotions of a truck. It's the truck that is the main star of this universe. (By the way, you aren't supposed be on the side of the bureaucratic system.)

In one of the next stories in this universe, the question arises as to the rights of search and seizure given to dog catchers. Is it a stupid question? Now the lawyers among us, both licensed and amateur, may know what is the full authority given to a dog catcher in pursuit of a 'criminal' animal or to protect an animal that is being illegally kept. In a very unscientific poll in which I just asked a random collection of people what were the search and seizure powers of a dogcatcher, I received as many answers as people I questioned.

They say that ignorance of the law is no excuse. Well, a lot of this stuff isn't law, but regulations that have the effect of law, but aren't law. Some come into existence without fanfare or announcement. I'll accept that we are supposed to do due diligence and investigate what we are allowed to do before we do it. That really sounds good and reasonable. How much time are we to spend on it? Unfortunately, it is becoming a full time job.

Some things you don't even think about, such as, parking a car in front of a friend's house when we visit them. Turns out that in some places it is okay to park a car on the street in front of someone's house during the day, but at dusk it becomes a crime (must be a law to keep vampires away). No signs are posted to that effect. Suddenly, you are paying a $100 ticket.

Do you think I'm making this up? I'm not. That is how I got my first and only traffic ticket. It all started when I helped take someone to a hospital. In hindsight, I should have known that I should have stopped and consulted a lawyer when I parked my car. Unfortunately, I was more concerned with my friend's health than obeying a parking regulation that I had no idea existed. There were other cars parked on the street -- why shouldn't I? They weren't parked there when I got back from the hospital.

It is time for Sean to get his next magic gift and to move on to the adult world of college. It's a chance to introduce new characters, a new environment, and, of course, a new magic gift.

Hope you enjoy the story for what it's supposed to be -- a little bit of fun.

Yesterday morning, I posted the last chapter of Service Society. The feedback has been tremendous. One request that has been made repeatedly is to post it to finestories.com so that folks can share it with others without sending them to a sex story website. Well, I have started to do that. I will post it in units of ten chapters a day over the next seven days.

Normally at the conclusion of a story, I post a few comments about it. I write about my thoughts of the story and the reactions of various readers. I have already done this in a couple of posts, but I will add a few comments here.

A lot of people understood exactly where Dexter was coming from. His life reflected their lives or the lives of people they know. Still others rejected that things had become that bad. The truth -- I think it depends on where you are and what you do for a living.

Dexter's relationship with his family, particularly Janet, was the subject of a lot of emails. I got everything from 'burn the bitch' to 'what an asshole'. Some people particularly hated the chapters dealing with family interactions. A lot of people were rooting for Amber or Samantha as Dexter's new love interest.

Basically, I feel that our ties with family and friends have been sacrificed in our modern society. In most cases it wasn't intentional, but dictated by events and expectations placed upon us. No one asks to work overtime without pay in order to keep their jobs. They'd rather spend their time with friends and family. That's not always possible.

People are social animals with the same emotional needs as cavemen. If you don't want to be alone then there are two choices: forge new relationships or renew the old ones. They are not mutually exclusive choices. Dexter chose to do both, but only after discovering that dropping old relationships didn't make him any happier.

A lot of people felt that the only reason Dexter was able to succeed was because he got a lot of money from his company. Well, the website was earning money and that is what he lived on. It could have been his only source of money throughout the story. A website with a hundred thousand visitors a month can earn millions.

However, I felt that having access to a large amount of money was necessary for the story. Why? There was a good reason beyond punishing the company for which he initially worked.

Without money, Dexter was basically a small guy who was successfully challenging a large hostile system. That was good and could have ended the story right there. I mean, we all like a good David vs. Goliath story.

However, I felt that a role model for how the system could be run in a less hostile fashion was necessary. Who better than Dexter, an engineer who wanted to make products that made people's lives better and viewed his profession as serving mankind? I couldn't think of anyone and I was writing the story.

Having the money to create the coffeemaker company was part of allowing him to be that role model. He did the simple things to improve the workplace -- things like delegating authority and responsibility, taking the time to perform the proper level of engineering before releasing a product, providing an appropriate work environment, and looking out for the welfare of his employees. Revolutionary concepts? No, not at all.

One last comment. Dexter's story started on a Tuesday morning and ended on a Tuesday morning. I wanted to contrast those two mornings, pointing out where we are and where we could be. In the beginning, he was encased in his corporate warrior gear - work clothes, blackberry, cell phone, and other weapons of corporate warfare. In the end, he was nude and open to the light of the sun. A move from a cold life to one filled with warmth despite the fact that a chill hangs in the air.

I will be taking a small vacation while I prepare my next story. Sometimes a new story, like Service Society, will consume my ability to write and at the expense of other stories. I'm engaged in writing such a story now. It's just part of the creative process.

One last thing-- requests about stories. Magic will be completed soon -- the last three chapters are in my brain, but not on computer. I still am not satisfied with my attempts to reproduce the lost chapters of The Quatyl and I'm thinking about writing a conclusion chapter that leaves open the possibility of a continuance with James Junior. It is highly unlikely that I will return to the John Carter Universe although I have thought about a Bard's tale set in that universe (no promises). There will be a Damsels in Distress story in the future -- the first three chapters are written, but I'm blocked on the details of the adventure. Submarine Dreams is in process, but going slowly. I'm pulling together a Magus in Love story set in the Solutions Incorporated world.

I think it is interesting that some readers consider Dexter a whiner. There have been so many comments to that effect, that I went back to the story to understand why readers feel that way. In looking over the story, I find that he hasn't really complained to anyone (except to his therapist and isn't that why one goes to a therapist?). I will admit that he did write a ranting webpage shortly after he was fired.

Dexter looks back at how life used to be and how it is now. The majority of that reflection is internal. He isn't sitting there telling everyone 'Woe is me -- I'm so unhappy.' He might be feeling that way, but he isn't broadcasting it to everyone. In fact, he takes action to get rid of the irritants in his life. That isn't whining.

Lazlo Zalezac, the author, does let you, the reader, know what is going on inside Dexter's head. It's part of making a social commentary about the world we live in. It is about pointing at something and saying -- 'Look, that is broken.'

The chapter about finding a bank isn't about him complaining that banks are bad. He is searching for a bank that provides him with the service he wants. There is no reason for him to give his patronage to a business that doesn't satisfy him. He states that position quite clearly to his lawyer as an explanation as to why he doesn't go to the first bank they encountered.

The chapter at the steakhouse is about his observations and the little irritants that we, as customers, put up with, and accept without complaint. He doesn't complain to anyone in that chapter. He actually enjoys his steak. He didn't enjoy the service so he left a lousy tip -- that's not exactly whining.

Dexter searches for businesses that provide the level of service that he wants. There is nothing wrong with that. He can spend a little more money to get the service he wants or he can serve himself to save a little money. That's a personal choice and it doesn't make one hardheaded, whiny, or an asshole. You have the same choices.

Many have suggested that Dexter should compromise on things such as the absence of a cherry on the ice cream sundae. Why, if he's paying for something, should he have to compromise on getting his money's worth? Why buy something if it isn't what you want? I think those are legitimate questions that anyone who is a customer should ask. Those questions are asked throughout the story in many different ways.

Now a common criticism of Dexter as a character concerns his treatment of his family. I have received many emails concerning how he acts like a hurt angry child. Having seen a few couples go through divorces, that kind of behavior is pretty common. More than one respectable man has spent a night in jail after being told by his wife that she wants a divorce. I know of few men who would react to a text message such as he received by texting back that they should go have a cup of tea and discuss the matter.

I tried to make Dexter a little human in how he reacted to his wife's text message. So yes, he's acting like a hurt angry child. It takes time to get over anger. It takes time for wounds to heal. Just spend some time with someone going through a divorce to see how quickly they bounce back.

Sometimes I wonder if the reason people feel uneasy about Dexter as a character is because they see the same problems, but are unwilling to accept that they are, in part, responsible for those problems. They accept bad service without comment and before long they've come to accept poor service as the status quo. They buy things that work for a year and then throw it away when it breaks without complaining that it was a waste of money -- accepting instead that is just how things are.

Perhaps, it is being told that accepting less than what you want now is going to assure that you're going to get less than what you want in the future. With each transaction between you and a business, you are establishing what level of service you are willing to accept. If you keep going back to poor service, you will continue to get poor service.

I believe that you can't fix a problem until you recognize it is a problem.

Here's an interesting statistic: approximately 1 out of a 100 babies at birth have bodies that differ from standard male or female. Almost everyone argues that that statistic is wrong. We consider gender confusion at birth to be relatively rare, but it isn't.

What does this statistic mean? Well, I suggest that means that if you have a problem, you can bet that with 6 billion people walking on this planet that there are a million others who have the same problem as you. That's kind of a scary thought, isn't it?

The upside to this is that if you find a solution to a problem, you can bet that someone will appreciate your solution.